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National Equity Atlas Releases Renter Factsheets

PolicyLink, in partnership with Right to the City, Homes for All, and CarsonWatch, released renter factsheets through the National Equity Atlas, a data resource provided by PolicyLink and the USC Program for Environmental and Regional Equity to “track, measure, and make the case for inclusive growth.” The factsheets contain key statistics on renter demographics, incomes, cost burdens, and non-housing expenses for the United States and 39 cities. The national factsheet also includes data on the impact of renters on the larger economy.

Nationally, if a renter household spent only 30% of its income or less on housing costs, it would realize an average annual savings of $6,200. This savings translates to an additional $124 billion a year in disposable income that all renters combined could save or spend in their communities. Since minority groups are disproportionately represented among renter households, this increase in disposable income would also help shrink racial inequities. On average, black renter households would see a 13% increase in disposable income and Latino renter households would see an increase of 11%.